Homicide suspect was out of jail on probation

March 13, 2014

MARTINSBURG - A man accused of strangling a 72-year-old woman at her home near Martinsburg was recently released from jail and was on probation when the March 8 homicide occurred, according to court documents and the man's probation officer.

William Patrick Jackson, 37, of no fixed address, was arrested Tuesday on one felony count of first-degree murder and six counts of fraudulent use of an access device after investigators learned he had stolen the victim's bank card and made several fraudulent transactions.

Jackson was later arraigned by Berkeley County Magistrate Charles C. Cole Sr. and, as of Wednesday, was being held at Eastern Regional Jail on $560,000 bail.

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William Patrick Jackson

Jackson's probation officer, Bryant Snapp, helped identify the accused in photographs obtained from video surveillance footage captured at the Martinsburg Wal-Mart, where Jackson allegedly used the victim's stolen bank card six times the day after the homicide.

According to Snapp, Jackson was convicted in Morgan County by way of a plea agreement on May 17, 2010, on charges of delivery of hydrocodone, delivery of cocaine and grand larceny. Snapp was sentenced to five years of probation, but a petition to revoke Jackson's probation was later filed.

Snapp said Wednesday that Jackson failed to report for a meeting on Oct. 8, 2013, and tested positive for drugs on Oct. 29, 2013, and again on Dec. 12, 2013. Jackson tested positive for opiates and cocaine following the first failed drug test and tested positive for opiates, cocaine and THC after the second test, Snapp said.

A judge revoked Jackson's probation, and he was sentenced to 60 days in jail on Jan. 13. Snapp said Jackson was released from jail Feb. 21 and was placed back on probation.

Sgt. Ted Snyder, the lead investigator in the case, said it's believed Jackson met the victim sometime in December.

"(He was) one of these unemployed guys that go door to door and, you know, say 'what can I do for you?,'" said Snyder. "I think somewhere around December they initially met and he had done a few jobs here and there for her."

During questioning, Jackson told Berkeley County Sheriff's Department investigators he was at Tyler's home, located at 174 Picture Mountain Drive, on the morning of March 8. He said he knew the woman because he had done some yard work for her in the past and she sometimes gave him food and money, according to court records.

Jackson told police they were in the kitchen talking when he blacked out.

"Jackson stated that when he came to he was lying on top of Tyler on the living room floor. He stated that he saw that she had a blue in color bag over her head and that her hands were tied behind her back. Jackson told me that he knew that she was dead," a copy of the criminal complaint contained in the warrant for Jackson's arrest reads.

Jackson said he panicked and left the victim's residence on foot. When Jackson was asked by police if he believed he killed Tyler, he told an investigator that he did, records show.

At about 5:29 p.m. on March 8, Tyler's daughter called 911 after finding the woman dead. She told dispatchers that she last spoke with Tyler sometime the previous night.

Tyler was found on the floor in the living room with a plastic bag over her head. Her hands were tied behind her back with a black USB cord. Another cord was also tied tightly around her throat, records show.

No obvious signs of forced entry were found at the home. An empty billfold belonging to the victim was found on a couch in the living room, and it appeared as if someone had gone through it before discarding it, records show.

An autopsy was conducted March 10 by the West Virginia Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, and the cause of death was determined to be strangulation, records show.

That same day, a family member checked Tyler's bank account and found several purchases had been made with the woman's bank card after her death. The family member notified law enforcement about the transactions.

An investigator contacted the victim's bank and was able to obtain a record of the transactions made since the card was stolen. Six transactions were made at the Wal-Mart in Martinsburg. There was another attempted transaction at the same Wal-Mart on March 10, but the transaction was denied.

Loss prevention agents obtained receipts and video of the transactions. The man in the video was identified as Jackson. Investigators also received a photo of Jackson that were recently taken by a patrolman with the Martinsburg City Police Department. Jackson was wearing a jacket in the photo that matched the jacket worn by the suspect in the Wal-Mart surveillance footage, records show.

The six transactions made at the Wal-Mart on March 9 totaled about $727, records show.

A preliminary hearing in Berkeley County Magistrate Court is scheduled for March 19. Jackson faces life in prison if convicted of murder.